Written questions by Cooper.

Pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2024 to Question 3798 on NHS: Training, how many of the rejected or unsuccessful direct entry applicants were not accepted (a) due to the lack of a suitable place and (b) because demand for places exceeded supply in (i) 2021-2022, (ii) 2022-2023 and (iii) 2023-2024.

The Department does not hold the specific information requested. The number of posts available on the Science Training Programme each year is derived from a process of expressions of interest from host bodies, which are reviewed by national and regional commissioners and the National School of Healthcare Science. Available post numbers are therefore driven by demand for applicants and capacity in the host bodies.

Whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the value for money of ophthalmic care in independent treatment centres.

It is the responsibility of individual commissioners to commission services and agree contracts most suitable for their local context. Contracts between commissioners and providers must comply with the NHS Payment Scheme, a set of prices and rules used to deliver the most efficient, cost-effective care to patients. These unit prices are consistent across independent providers and National Health Service providers.

With reference to the conclusions of the report entitled Transplant care in the UK: a patient perspective, published by Kidney Care UK in July 2024, if he will take steps to ensure that eligible kidney disease patients facing kidney failure are pre-emptively placed on transplant waiting lists before undergoing dialysis.

NHS England’s Service Specification for Renal Transplantation identifies transplant as the optimal treatment option for patients with stage five chronic kidney disease (CKD 5) and mandates that all commissioned providers should assess the benefits and risks of transplantation with patients, six months ahead of commencing dialysis treatment.In 2022, NHS England’s Renal Services Transformation Programme produced a toolkit to support renal providers across England to transform care for patients with kidney disease. This includes principles around improving transplantation services and increasing pre-emptive transplantation rates for patients. The toolkit also includes a self-assessment questionnaire, with four key principles, to support renal providers to improve transplantation services for patients with CKD 5. Providers in England are supported by the NHS England commissioned Renal Clinical Networks to improve patient care, with all networks having identified transplantation improvement workstreams and clinical leads.The Department, NHS Blood and Transplant, and NHS England are working together to improve utilisation of all solid organs following recommendations from the Organ Utilisation Group 2023 report. This includes equity of access to transplant for all patients across the country.

Whether hospice funding will be included in his Department's 10-year plan for health and care.

We want a society where every person, as well as their families and carers, receives high-quality, compassionate care, from diagnosis through to end of life.I recently met NHS England and discussions have begun on how to reduce inequalities and variation in access to, and the quality of, palliative and end of life care in England.  We will consider next steps on palliative and end of life care, including hospice funding, in the coming months.We have committed to develop a 10-Year Health Plan to deliver a National Health Service fit for the future, by driving three shifts in the way health care is delivered. We will carefully be considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our stakeholders, including those in the hospice sector, as we develop the plan.The engagement process has been launched, and I would encourage the palliative and end of life care sector, including hospice providers, service users and their families, to engage with that process to allow us to fully understand what is not working as well as it should and what the potential solutions are. More information is available at the following link:https://change.nhs.uk/en-GB/The Department does not collect or hold data on the number of people waiting for places in hospices run by charitable organisations.

What data his Department (a) collects and (b) holds on the number of people waiting for places in hospices run by charitable organisations.

We want a society where every person, as well as their families and carers, receives high-quality, compassionate care, from diagnosis through to end of life.I recently met NHS England and discussions have begun on how to reduce inequalities and variation in access to, and the quality of, palliative and end of life care in England.  We will consider next steps on palliative and end of life care, including hospice funding, in the coming months.We have committed to develop a 10-Year Health Plan to deliver a National Health Service fit for the future, by driving three shifts in the way health care is delivered. We will carefully be considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our stakeholders, including those in the hospice sector, as we develop the plan.The engagement process has been launched, and I would encourage the palliative and end of life care sector, including hospice providers, service users and their families, to engage with that process to allow us to fully understand what is not working as well as it should and what the potential solutions are. More information is available at the following link:https://change.nhs.uk/en-GB/The Department does not collect or hold data on the number of people waiting for places in hospices run by charitable organisations.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2024 to Question 3791 on Respiratory Syncytial Virus: Vaccination, whether he has received any advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation on whether that vaccine should be extended to those children over one year old with spinal muscular atrophy type 1.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has not provided advice on whether the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine should be extended to children over the age of one year with spinal muscular atrophy type 1.The JCVI considered a range of evidence in advising who should be offered an immunisation, including the impact of the vaccine in different age groups, as well as the capacity of the National Health Service to deliver the programme alongside other important healthcare priorities.The vaccine for the national RSV programmes, Pfizer’s Abrysvo, is approved only for use in pregnant women, for infant protection, and older adults, following clinical trials in these groups. The JCVI has not provided advice on other groups, as the analysis that informed their advice looked at burden by age.In June 2023, the JCVI advised that existing infant risk groups eligible for RSV monoclonal antibody immunisation should preferentially be protected with nirsevimab over palivizumab. While children over the age of one year with spinal muscular atrophy type 1 are not currently in the eligible cohort, the JCVI’s advice is that NHS specialised commissioning should work within the existing guidance on preventative treatment for children considered to be at equivalent risk based on clinical judgment. The JCVI may provide further advice on the use of RSV monoclonal antibody immunisation in risk groups outside of the current recommendations in the future.

Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of a fan-led review of the music industry.

The Government will respond to the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee’s report on Grassroots music venues as soon as we can in the autumn, including its recommendation on a fan-led review of live and electronic music. As part of our commitment to putting fans at the heart of our policy on music, we will launch a consultation on the secondary ticket market in the autumn alongside a call for evidence on dynamic pricing.

Pursuant to the Answer of 10 September 2024 to Question 3784 on Solar Power: Housing, if he will make it his policy to regulate the Smart Export Guarantee market to ensure that (a) residential and (b) small commercial exporters of energy are paid the same price per unit as large commercial providers.

To encourage innovation and competition, the Smart Export Guarantee is a market-led mechanism in which energy suppliers, rather than the government, set both the tariff levels and structure. The scheme’s success should therefore be gauged by the diversity and creativity of the offerings. To date there is a good range of offers for both residential and commercial exporters which is evident in Ofgem’s latest SEG annual report (https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-and-social-schemes/smart-export-guarantee-seg/smart-export-guarantee-seg-contacts-guidance-and-resources). This demonstrates the scheme’s growth in terms of tariff variety, innovation, and prices. We will continue to keep this under review.

Communities and Local Government, with reference to her letter of 16 July 2024 to local council leaders, whether devolution settlements are available to district councils.

English devolution underpins this Government’s national mission to deliver economic growth for everyone, everywhere, raising living standards across the UK. While the previous government hoarded power in Whitehall, this Government will deliver the most ambitious programme of devolution this country has ever seen, pushing power into the hands of cities, towns, and villages across the country to unlock their true potential. Of course, we value the important role districts will play in this mission, and in due course the Government will publish a new devolution framework, which will set out in more detail the role district councils can play.